The present invention is drawn to the visualization of field of view constraints. More particularly, the invention is drawn to the visualization of sensor field of view based upon computing and visualizing the effect of constraints upon the sensor field of view.
In many fields, the knowledge of what is in a field of view of a sensor, satellite, or other such instrument can be very useful and a graphic display, typically of a two-dimensional (2D) projection of a three-dimensional (3D) field of view, can assist a user in evaluating the sufficiency of the field of view. For example, a sensor mounted on an aircraft may have a conical field of view that will be obscured or constrained by physical features of the aircraft, celestial bodies that interfere with the sensor, topographical features, etc. Additionally, for line-of-sight communications, it can be useful to be able to determine whether a particular location of one communication device is in the field of view of other communication devices.
The present invention is embodied in the Satellite Tool Kit/Visualization Option Version 6.0 (STKVO 6.0) available from Analytical Graphics, Inc. of Malvern, Pa. While previous versions of STK have included features for the visualization of field of view and have computed constraints, none of the prior versions of STK have included the computing and visualizing of the effect of constraints on sensor field of view found in the present invention. There are also many constraints included in STKVO 6.0 that have been developed for various objects, including but not limited to: Satellite, Missile, Launch Vehicle, Aircraft, Ground Vehicle, Ship, Facility, Target, Area Target, Line Target, Sensor, Transmitter, Receiver, and Radar.